


Are You An Angel?

by afrostpatternintherain



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Angels & Demons, Angel Yamaguchi Tadashi, Blood, Character Death, Demon Kageyama Tobio, Demon Tsukishima Kei, M/M, Multi, mentions of torture
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-30
Updated: 2017-03-07
Packaged: 2018-07-11 05:15:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 11
Words: 10,854
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7030444
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/afrostpatternintherain/pseuds/afrostpatternintherain
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the death of his contract partner, Kageyama is devastated. As a demon, life on earth without a contract is basically impossible.<br/>After the disappearance of his boyfriend, Kozume Kenma doesn't know what to do. Still, there's one thing he knows for sure: Hinata Shouyou can't be dead.<br/>Working as a team, will those two discover the truth or die trying?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Rainy Summer Day

'Go away,now!I don't want to ever see you again!'

Eyes that could kill if they intended to were now shimmering with tears. He turned around,staring at the ground.

'After everything we've achieved,you want to stop now?!Kageyama,why are you doing this,I still believe in us!' There was a crack in the other man's voice.

It was raining and you could see there was a big storm coming,dark clouds covered the sky.

The young man's orange hair was wet because of the heavy rainfall. Taking a deep breath,he approached the other man who was staring at the ground furiously.

'Kageyama,' he started, putting a hand on his shoulder only for it to be slapped away seconds later.

'Don't,' he hissed, 'I won't continue working for you,Hinata, I've already done enough damage.'

Hinata's eyes widened.

'So that's what this is about.' Glaring at the other man,he continued. 'I'm sorry Kageyama,but I won't break our contract. You know I can't do that.'

Nervously pulling his bag closer to his chest,he whispered, 'At least not yet. There's still this thing I have to do.'

Kageyama shook his head.

'I won't allow this. I will force you to stop right here and right now. This mission of yours is suicidal, Hinata!'

Hinata took a few more steps towards him. His eyebrows furrowed in anger.

'You won't tell me what to do. It may be true that I wasn't able to summon you on my own,but that doesn't mean that I'm stupid. You leave me no choice. I am your master and you won't disobey me.'

His heart filled with regret as soon as he spat out those words,but deep down he knew he'd done the right thing. Still, he hated it with every single fiber of his being.

'So that's how it is,' Kageyama uttered,his voice dangerously cold.

'Just go and die then, I won't stop you.'

Hinata closed the last bit of distance between them,ignoring Kageyama,who flinched because of his sudden movement. Then their lips touched. The feeling of closeness calmed both of them down. It was a feeling they had both grown way too fond of. Hinata gently moved his lips and was relieved when he was joined by Kageyama. Suddenly,he pushed him away.

'Don't do this!I'm going to taint you,you idiot!'He angrily wiped his mouth with his shirt's long sleeve and glared at him.

'Listen to my words,Hinata.' Even though his heart ached,he continued to talk, ignoring the lump forming in his throat.

'Break our contract and I'll be free. I fulfilled your wishes,I found what you've been looking for.'

Hinata took a step back.

'I see,you still have no clue of a human's soul. This is farewell. Goodbye Kageyama. ' He turned around.

'Hinata,you wouldn't...'Before he could continue,he was interrupted by Hinata's voice.

'Kageyama,I command you to stay here until I am done.'

He wanted to make a fuss, wanted to intervene, but Hinata disappeared right after muttering those words, leaving Kageyama alone in the rain. As soon as he was gone,Kageyama's head sagged down and the tears started to run.

'You just ran into your own demise,you knew that,didn't you? You've always been this reckless.'

 

An hour later,Kageyama felt unbearable pain spreading through his body. Knowing what had happened, his eyes widened in shock and his chest started to ache. Agony filled his body and soul, he couldn't stop himself from letting out pain-filled screams.

The pain didn't pass or decrease for another half an hour and after that, Kageyama was devastated. While taking deep breaths and trying to regulate his breathing,he looked up to the sky. He didn't even realize that he had somehow fallen to the ground.

Finally the sky cleared up and the storm had passed, now he was able to see the bright colours of a rainbow glowing softly in the distance.

'How fitting,' he whispered,his voice sounding hoarse and broken. A lonely tear rolled down his cheek.

'You were right,this was our last goodbye.'

After a while, he tried to stand up,but his legs gave in and he had to lean on a tree to support his weakened body. Like this, he somehow managed to stand up again. The torture had been so much worse than first anticipated.

Kageyama brought the index and middle finger of his left hand to his forehead,trying to concentrate.

'Hinata?'

Silence. Perhaps he had done something wrong.

Another attempt: Still nothing but silence.

Thinking about the torture that awaited him,he knew that he deserved it. He let his associate die.

'Gate of hell,open up!'

Still leaning against the tree,he tried his best to stay conscious. The blood loss was making him feel horribly dizzy.

The worst he could do right now was scare some innocent pedestrians, but honestly, he just didn't care at this point. There were more important things to do.

A new wave of pain went through his body and he had to kneel down once again. The pain was unbearable.

Why didn't it work?

'Gate of hell,reveal yourself!'

Again,nothing happened. Kageyama furrowed his brows and his face twisted into a grimace.

'That's impossible',he muttered to himself. Then, he thought about it. Actually, it wasn't. 'Fuck.'

Hinata was dead,but their bond was still working. There was no way for Kageyama to return to hell.

He was stuck on this miserable planet called earth.

 

 

 


	2. Followed By His Own Demons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter turned out to be so short because I didn't want to add it to the next one,so I'm sorry!

Months passed and Kageyama became increasingly desperate. A demon without his master wasn't something that should exist on this earth. Yet still, the bond connecting him to Hinata was working and leaving Kageyama clueless and angry.

This was a disaster.

The contract stopped him from returning to hell and receiving the punishment for letting his human partner die,which usually consisted of at least 100 years of torture. The thought made Kageyama shiver. While he was deep in his thoughts, his fingers slid over the scars countless wounds had left on his body.

Not fulfilling your contract led to a punishment,which he was sadly just too familiar with. Like an iron heated through the flames of purgatory burning his whole being, yet simultaneously like drowning in an ocean of sulfur. This time, it would be even worse. He had committed the worst of all crimes. He had left his advocate to die. He had broken the most important rule of hell.

 

_A demon is not allowed to have romantic or sexual contact of any sorts with neither human nor angel._

 

3 months after Hinata's death, Kageyama decided to distract himself by enrolling in a university. A demon enrolling in a university may have sounded stupid, but it was actually Kageyama's best shot at finding a new advocate. Everyone knew students were the most desperate of all, that's why they were such good targets to begin with.

So Kageyama learned Korean ,joined the volleyball team and looked out for some idiot that he could lure into signing a deal with a demon. Nevertheless he still had to pay the monthly price for being on earth, the negative aspect of an immortal's life on earth.

Each month,Kageyama had to slaughter a human and eat their heart. He hated this part of being a demon, but he had no other choice.

In hell,demons had full control over their powers, hell fire was their fuel, but on earth, there was no such thing as hell fire. The thing that was akin to it was the dying heart of a human being.

Even though Kageyama tried his best to find another partner, he still couldn't stop thinking about Hinata. No matter where he went, he swore he heard his laugh echoing through the wind, saw his face in every tree and smelled his scent, which seemed to follow him where ever he went.

From day to day,Kageyama felt lonelier and lonelier. He missed Hinata, since they had spent nearly 5 years together. He missed his loud, obnoxious laugh, the way he shouted when he was excited and almost even their arguments. Now the silence was killing him slowly.

 

It was a sunny Thursday and Kageyama had volleyball practice in the gymnasium. For some reason,he really enjoyed this sport. It made him forget, at least for a few hours.

The majority of his teammates had already left as he started tossing ball after ball by himself. In the middle of trying to do a particularly hard jump serve, Kageyama suddenly felt the presence of another human being entering the gym. Since he had stopped concentrating on the ball he fell hard to the floor.

As he looked up,he saw a young man with bleached hair tied up in a tiny ponytail staring at him. He reminded Kageyama of a cat, maybe due to the fact that he somewhat smelled like one. The young man extended his hand,offering him his help.

After getting up again, Kageyama stared at him.

'Thanks,I guess.'

The other boy just nodded as he tucked a strand of hair behind his ear.

'My name is Kenma Kozume.'

'Kageyama Tobio.'

He took a good look at him. Kenma was actually rather small and thin, his facial expression bored. His eyes however looked incredibly vivid yet cautious.

Kageyama smiled to himself. If he'd be stupid enough to agree on a contract, Kageyama might have found his new advocate.

Kenma Kozume.

How truly interesting.

Finally, after hours of practice he made his way to the changing room and there it was again. Hinata's laugh,causing him to shiver and stop in his tracks. Kenma,who was also in the changing room, suddenly flinched, which surprised Kageyama. He shouldn't be able to hear that. No one except fore him was supposed to be able to hear this torturous sound.

After all it was simply a hallucination Kageyama's mind had come up with in hours of loneliness, right?

 


	3. Decisions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After meeting Kageyama Tobio decisions were made and Kenma was ready to give everything up for the person he loved the most.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is chapter 3! I have to excuse myself for not uploading in quite a while,but I had a writer's block. Still, I hope you'll enjoy this chapter and leave a comment if you feel like it.  
> Greetings and salutations,Glen.

Kenma stood in front of the mirror and looked at himself.  
Shoulder-long,bleached hair,which was being kept together in a ponytail and a face you wouldn't recognize in a crowd. There was nothing special about him.  
He was too small for his age and wasn't even particularly muscular.  
Just another face in the crowd.  
Taking his bag and keys,he prepared to leave,pinning a note for his roommate Kuroo onto the fridge. With his earphones plugged in,he made his way to the gymnasium of his university.  
On his way he passed couples,laughing friends and some acquaintances he recognized from some of his lectures. Seeing friends interact with each other made Kenma unbearably sad,since there was only one person he could think about: Hinata.  
Since the disappearance of his ex-boyfriend,Kenma was like a shell of his former self. He tried to continue living his life like before,but deep down he knew that he'd lost a part of himself which he could never replace.  
Kenma's friends worried about him,but he didn't care.  
With Hinata,his life's joy had also disappeared.  
Half an hour later,he arrived at the gym. Sliding the door open,he saw a dark haired man playing volleyball. He was rather muscular and currently trying to do a jump serve. For a second,the thought of seeing an angel crossed Kenma's mind.  
They introduced themselves and went back to minding their own businesses.  
As he changed into his gym clothes,he swore he heard Hinata's laughter. It sounded like it came from a place far away, yet still close.  
Kenma wanted it to stop. He wanted it to stop so badly. Since Hinata's disappearance, he was able to make out his laughter, yet he was never to be found.  
He wouldn't admit it in front of his friends, but he had already given up on finding Hinata, seeing him just once more.  
He was dead. Every fiber of his being screamed at him, telling him that he was no longer to be saved. At first, he didn't want to listen them, thought he was going insane.  
Now, he agreed with them.   
This time, the laughter, the ghost of Hinata, was particularly loud. Kenma sensed another presence next to him, so he turned around.  
Standing there was Kageyama Tobio, the man whom he just met. He looked surprised , yet also pained.  
'Did you just hear that?'  
Kenma stared at him. He wasn't the only one who heard Hinata's voice. This meant he wasn't losing his mind.  
Hinata could still be alive.  
He didn't want to get his hopes up, but it was already too late for that.  
Eyes stinging, tears threatening to spill, Kenma grabbed his bag and ran out of the gym.  
He ran and ran until he was out of breath.  
Today would be the day. He would summon all the courage he required to do the thing he didn't want to do at all.  
Summoning a demon.  
A strong one, to be sure that everything would work out just fine. He knew this was forbidden. He knew his friends would be disappointed and probably leave him.  
Perhaps he would lose everything he loved.  
Still, he needed to do this. Hinata might still be alive and now he had solid proof.  
So Kenma returned home, filled with hope and determination. He could do this. Failing wasn't an option.  
'Yo, Kenma!', he was greeted by Kuroo, his roommate.  
'What are you up to?'   
He nodded at him, to invested in his own plans to say much more.  
'I'll go to my room.'  
After he had closed the door and made sure that every window and door was locked he took out all the ingredients he needed. Time to get serious.  
After drawing the pentagram with chalk he took out his book of incantations and searched for the correct formula. It took him a while, but he eventually found it.  
Then he sat everything up.  
He was ready to commit this crime. For Hinata, he would do anything. To Kenma, the law was less important than finding his lost boyfriend.  
'Demon of hell, I summon thee!' Kenma's voice didn't quiver, not even for a short moment.  
He knew exactly what he was doing. He wouldn't give up, not now. Not after all these months filled with sorrow and pain.  
Summoning a demon and forming a contract to find Hinata was his last resort. This had to work or he would've been left without any hope. This wouldn't happen though. For the first time in his life, Kenma was positive that it would work. No, it simply had to work. There was no other way. It was that simple.  
Black smoke was filling up the room and Kenma had to cough so he could get the smoke out of his body.  
Then there was ragged breathing to be heard. Turning around to the source of the sound, Kenma was surprised.  
Standing in front of him was a demon with black hair, his eyes were black and blue, no white was to be seen. Blue twines covered his body, every bare part of skin that was to be seen was decorated with those dark patterns.  
The demon stared at him, his expression was indescribable.  
'It's you', Kenma coughed out, covering his mouth with his hand. He had heard of demons and angels living on earth, but he had never believed those rumours until now. People liked to talk and Kenma wasn't one to believe every lie people spread.  
This one was true though since the demon standing in front of him seemed to be surprisingly familiar to him.  
As he stared at him, Kenma finally connected the strings.  
This demon was the man he had met in the gym. This man was the demon he had just summoned.  
Kageyama Tobio was a demon. A particularly strong one, to add.  
'Are you the one who summoned me?', Kageyama asked with his brows slightly furrowed.  
Kenma's expression changed. He needed to stay focused on his goal.  
'I have a quest for you,demon. Lend me your power so I can find and retrieve Hinata Shouyou.'


	4. The Contract

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kageyama had been summoned by Kenma, who seemed to know him from a long time ago, to help him find Hinata. He didn't want to help. Could Kenma possibly convince him?

Kenma Kozume had been the one to summon him. He also was the stranger Kageyama had met in the gym.  
This could only mean trouble. Now someone from his university knew about him being a demon.  
Even worse, Kenma needed him to find none other than Hinata Shouyou, what a coincidence.  
He really didn't want to be the one to inform him about Hinata's death. The wounds were still too fresh. So he figured he could try scaring the boy off.  
'Do I look like someone you can call for the easiest of tasks?' he growled, his face a mask of anger;  
lambent blue flames engaging the both of them. 'I decline.'  
Hinata's death was his fault. He surely could've stopped him, if he had only tried harder. Searching for this dead man wasn't something Kageyama could do without destroying himself in the process.  
Kenma glared at him.  
'It's not an easy task. I've tried everything to get him back. Still, he is nowhere to be found and left no traces.'  
Pacing through the room, he moved an inch closer. 'Then I remembered you and the jobs he used to hide from me.'  
Kageyama remembered now as well. This man, Kenma Kozume, was Hinata's boyfriend.  
Back then, after following the traces of a demon which had gone wild Hinata had invited him to dinner with Kenma.  
They both were in a relationship with Hinata, so they naturally had been curious to meet each other.  
All of that had happened one year prior to Hinata's death.  
Kenma fiddled with his fingers. 'But I never would have figured you were a demon he worked with.  
Form a contract with me. We have the same goal.'  
Once again, they both witnessed Hinata's laughter ringing through the silence. Kageyama wished he couldn't hear it at all. It drove him insane.  
Kenma's eyes darted through the room, looking for a sign, looking for anything.  
Kageyama stared at him.  
'Can you hear him as well?'  
He nodded. 'Since the night he disappeared.'  
Looking at him, Kageyama could see his devotion to Hinata. It was the same kind of devotion he had. Hope started to flood through him; it felt like drinking cold water after almost dying of thirst.  
He wasn't the only one who could hear him. Maybe he wasn't losing his mind after all.  
Kageyama could feel his whole being vibrate. There was a small chance of Hinata still being alive.  
'I will form a contract with you, Kenma Kozume.'  
An elegant black knife appeared out of thin air. Kageyama's demon weapon. 'The deal requires to be sealed with blood.'  
With a swift movement he grabbed Kenma's wrist and made a deep yet clean cut.  
Kenma didn't interfere as he brought the wrist to his lips. After licking up the blood Kageyama placed a kiss upon the wrist to heal the cut. Kenma flinched.  
The taste of copper spread in his mouth and it took him all he had to stop himself from gagging.  
'Now it's you turn.'  
Kenma stared at his wrist as if he couldn't quite register what just happened. Instead of a scar a black pentagram adorned his wrist. If you looked closely you could even spot lines which looked like dark blue petals and vines. The pentagram was beautiful, yet cruel in its own way.  
Kageyama now slit open his own wrist and moved it closer to Kenma's face. There was blood dripping down his arm and staining the white carpet.  
Eventually, he grabbed the arm and licked up the blood as well. He shot a glance to Kageyama, silently motioned him to go on. He seemed to be in pain.  
A kiss was being placed upon the wrist.  
Suddenly, they both felt energy coursing through their veins. One of them was glad to have his powers back fully restored while the other one was left in wonder about the new sensation.  
As he looked down, he realized that Kageyama's wrist was back to normal. Then he looked up. The other man now looked more human than he had ever looked before. His eyes were back to normal, the marks on his body had disappeared and he even looked tired. Could demons get tired?  
Yet something still felt strange, different than usual.   
Kenma swore there was now ice pumping through his veins instead of blood. Never before had he felt as cold and as inanimate.  
'As of this moment, we are contracted.' Kageyama's voice sounded too loud. The air suddenly felt too thick. Breathing was an obstacle, breathing was too much of an effort, breathing seemed to be impossible.  
Before he could grasp what was going on, Kenma hit the ground and was being swallowed by darkness.   
Somewhere far away he could hear Hinata's voice. The scream pierced through his ears, his mouth, his whole being. With a horrible presentiment in mind, Kenma finally lost his consciousness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am really sorry that I'm updating so late, but this fic is a bit hard for me to write. Nevertheless, I hope you'll enjoy the chapter. ~Glen


	5. The Colourless Room

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hinata didn't know how to escape. No door, no window, nothing that could've helped him flee from this colourless prison.  
> Then two men entered the locked room and changed his life drastically.

The lack of noise made this room – every inch of it was covered in white – seem even more abnormal. It wasn't just quiet. There were no sounds at all.  
As he let his eyes wander down his body he realized he was wearing a plain white nightgown. He didn't remember putting it on. Or entering this room in general.  
In the room, there was no one and nothing except for him.  
Knocking on the walls tentatively, there seemed to be nothing behind them. How curious.  
'Hello?! Is anybody there?' his voice was raspy, he felt as if he hadn't spoken in weeks, maybe even months.  
'Hello?! Why has this room no door? Who would build a room without an entrance? Hellooo?!'  
So he sat on the ground for minutes, maybe hours or even days. Time was nothing more than a concept.  
There was no way of escape. Scraping his fingers open to break through the walls screaming till he exhaustedly fell asleep on the hard ground of his colourless prison.  
No matter what he did, no one came to save him. He was all by himself.  
Moments, months, years, maybe even decades later -he himself would never know- a sweet scent started to find its way into Hinata's nose. The sweetness made him gag.  
His heart started to beat faster and faster. Something was definitely wrong. Yet there was no way of escape. He knew he was dead, still he feared what was going to come. Life had repeatedly taught him there were worse things than death. Hinata was afraid. Afraid of finally disappearing. Afraid of being forgotten.  
In moments like these, he yearned for Kageyama and Kenma. They had always managed to make him feel safe. Yet they weren't destined to ever meet again.  
Hinata felt longing and every additional second he had to spend in this sweet prison, he regretted not having listened to Kageyama.  
A while later, the wall he was facing suddenly started to shake. A door appeared.  
Feeling weak, he still tried to crawl to his way of escape, to the key of his freedom. Before he could reach the handle it was being opened by someone else. Or something else.  
Hinata looked up in shock. Was he going to die now, all by himself?  
Two angels entered the room.  
There was no other way to describe them. With stunning features and giant wings gracing their backs, they seemed to be truly angelic.  
One of them had black and white hair, making him look like an annoyingly attractive skunk. Aside from that, he seemed to beam with energy.  
The other man had black hair and seemed to be way calmer than his companion.  
Almost too calm, Hinata thought to himself.  
Said man mustered him.  
'Good day, Hinata Shouyou. We are here to welcome you as the newest member of our community. I am Akaashi and this,' he pointed at the guy next to him ', is Bokuto.'  
Bokuto walked up to Hinata and grinned. Upon seeing him close, he somehow resembled an owl.  
'Hey! You are really tiny!'  
Hinata stared at him, now standing up.  
'Fight me.'  
'Oh, I like this one!'  
Akaashi cleared his throat, making him focus on the actual reason for their visit again.  
'Wait a second, I'm human. I can't become an angel!'  
For the first time, Akaashi smiled as well.  
'For your brave deeds as a human being you have gained the permission to continue living your life as an angel.' In his hands he was holding a beautifully adorned flask which Hinata ogled with suspicion.  
'How is that supposed to work?'  
Bokuto grinned. 'It just does.' He still seemed to be way too energetic.  
For Hinata, this answer sufficed.  
'Drink out of this flask. You have to empty it,' he was being told. Then Akaashi handed it over to Hinata who was now leaning to a wall.  
The cap opened with a satisfying plop sound and Hinata didn't even hesitate for a second. He felt as if he had no other choice at all. It was as if he wasn't even able to disagree on the whole deal at all.  
With one quencher he emptied the whole flask as he had been told.  
The liquid burned in the back of his throat like alcohol. Unexpectedly, the burning sensation spread through his whole body, settling down between his shoulder blades.  
Hinata fell over and out of the corner of his eye he saw Akaashi and Bokuto hurriedly leaving the room.  
The door vanished once again, leaving him all by himself.  
But now, he wasn't alone anymore. The pain was his companion all along.  
He screamed in agony. Moments later, the skin surrounding his shoulder blades started to violently rip open.  
Hinata coughed out blood. Still, his body didn't let him lose consciousness.  
Hands balled to fists, he tried to regulate his breathing. Tried to think of Kageyama and Kenma. Tried to distance himself from the pain.  
Another wave of agony washed over him.  
Finally, giant black wings flowered out of the space between his shoulder blades.  
The air was thick with the scent of copper and filled with Hinata's bloodcurdling screams.  
As he felt the blood dripping down his back his body took mercy on him at last.  
Hinata lost his consciousness.  
Never before had he welcomed the dark and cold embrace of unconsciousness as much as now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A normal uploading schedule? Never heard of it! I usually don't upload that quickly, but I've written this one even before chapter 4 and it's my favourite. So I hope you'll like it and leave a comment! ~Glen


	6. Hinata's Flat

With his vision still blurry he found himself staring at his room's ceiling. The feeling of dizziness slowly vanished and he was able to sit up again. As Kenma was looking around he realized he was sitting in his own bed. After quickly checking his wrist he was able to breathe again; it hadn't been a dream after all. The demon's sign was still there. As he touched the skin around the symbol he felt unnaturally cold.

Letting his gaze wander through the room, he eventually found Kageyama sleeping on his chair. So apparently demons needed to sleep as well. Out of curiosity Kenma stood up, walked over to him and shook him awake; neither gentle nor rough.

Now that he was beginning to wake up again his expression changed back to his usual grim one.

'What are you doing?' He quickly rubbed his eyes and Kenma stared at him.

'We should discuss our further actions.'

With this, Kageyama was fully awake. 'Tell me your first command.'

Kenma sat down onto the carpet, legs crossed, but in no way relaxed. As his eyes travelled across the carpet he finally spotted the bloodstain of last night. It was huge and highly visible. Explaining to Kuroo where it came from would surely be fun. He always worried too much about Kenma, no matter what happened.

However there were more important things to worry about. Thinking about their first step, he soon had come up with a plan.

'First, find out about Hinata's last known whereabouts,' Kenma ordered. Never before had he been as determined as he currently was. Even from the very beginning, Hinata had always managed to light a spark within him. Now wasn't that different, only his situation had changed drastically.

Kageyama nodded, seemingly approving of his request. For a split second, there was something strange about his expression, yet Kenma couldn't quite figure out what it was and just let it slip. Perhaps he was simply having a bad day.

Before leaving Kageyama stared at him once more and Kenma could feel shivers of ice trickling down his spine.

'Take care of your body,' he grumbled and then vanished into dust-like smoke.

Surprised, Kenma stood there for a second, immovable. However, he still had a few problems to solve himself. For example thinking of a good excuse to explain the bloodstain on the carpet without having Kuroo drag him to the next best doctor.

 

The next day the ringing of his phone was what'd ripped Kenma out of his sleep.

Perhaps he'd dozed off for one hour, two at most. Nonetheless, he was tired as hell. With sluggish movements he finally picked up the phone. 'Hello?' There were a few moments of silence on the other end, then crackling and static in the distance.

'This is Kageyama. Meet me in front of Hinata's flat.' With a click he hung up on Kenma, leaving him confused, yet fueled by the possibility of new information about Hinata's disappearance.

Quickly he put on his jacket and pinned up his hair into a messy bun. After telling Kuroo that he was leaving he disappeared into the cold winter scenery.

 

'Hello Kenma,' Kageyama greeted and then motioned him to come inside. 'I think we should go through Hinata's stuff and I can't do it by myself, that's why I called you.'

Normally, they both were against going through other people's stuff; privacy was their sanctuary. Now, however, they had no other choice.

'Let's do it,' he agreed and they both went up to Kageyama and Hinata's old flat.

 

Hours later they were still looking through drawer after drawer, Hinata's possessions seemed to be endless.

'What does he even need binoculars for?' Another box was being opened.

' Don't ask me.' Then Kageyama continued flicking through an old notebook. 'Wait, I think I've found something.' For a moment he simply stared at the tattered piece of paper he held in is hands.

Now Kenma was interested as well. One step closer to getting Hinata back.

'What is it?' he asked curiously. A grin spread on Kageyama's face, making it look even more menacing than usual.

'An address, a name and a phone number.' Hastily, Kenma dropped the binoculars and hurried over to Kageyama's side. Suddenly, the demon groaned. 'No fucking way.' This particular reaction confused Kenma.

'What's wrong?'

'We've got a problem. I know exactly who we need to call. His name is Tsukishima Kei and he wants to kill me,' he said with a deadpan voice. Kenma couldn't help himself but sigh.

'That's gonna be a problem. Still, we need to call them.'

'I know. You do it though. I don't have a phone,' Kageyama mumbled. The statement shocked Kenma. How could you survive without a phone?

'What do you mean you don't have a phone. How'd you call me this morning then?'

'I borrowed my landlord's telephone.'

With quick movements Kenma pulled out his phone, still in disbelief. As he started dialing he felt the familiar feeling of his heart beating too fast, could feel his hands starting to shake vigorously.

After a few beeping sounds someone picked up the phone with an annoyed voice.

'Yeah, who is it?' A second later Kenma answered, voice shakier than usual.

'This is Kenma Kozume, a friend of Shouyou Hinata. Would you agree on meeting up with me?' Silence, then hushed whispers in the back.

'Alright, come to my place. I believe you already know where I live. See you in four hours.'

After he'd ended the call Kageyama stared at him. 'What did he say?' he asked, an unrecognizable undertone in his voice. A frown was adorning his face and he crossed his arms. For a moment he looked pained, then he didn't need an answer anymore. 'Prepare yourself.'

With a slightly puzzled expression Kenma put the phone back into his and turned to Kageyama. 'Who exactly is this Tsukishima?'

'He's a demon and he is not to be trusted.'

Kenma's heart beat in anticipation and to be true, he found himself being scared and wary as well. Demons were creatures which shouldn't be trusted after all.

 

Sitting in a corner of the room with his legs crossed, he was now secretly watching Kageyama while pretending to play a game he had already finished several months ago. Although there were still around three hours left until the appointment would take place they both had decided on staying in the apartment. After mulling it over again and again Kenma eventually gathered all his courage and convinced himself that he should actually try talking to Kageyama, who currently seemed to be deep in thought. Keeping a conversation going was an incredibly hard and tiring thing; even more when your conversational partner turned out to be a demon. 'Who exactly is this guy?' he finally asked. No matter how much he thought about it, he just couldn't think of what to expect from another demon. Puzzled, Kageyama looked up from the notebook he'd been going through.

'Stop asking, I can't describe him. He's just...' he ended up staring at the wall.

'Kageyama?'

Suddenly he jumped up, startled Kenma in the process, and ran over to the front door.

'What's wrong?'

'They are already here.'

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so damn sorry for updating way way way too late, but I have been in a bit of a writer's block with this fanfiction in general. However I now have various chapters already planned out, so I should be able to update every two weeks. Hope you enjoyed the new chapter, bye!


	7. Universal Truth

The door opened as if it had never been locked before and revealed two young men.

The first one was tall, blonde and wore glasses while the second one appeared to be smaller, freckled and quite friendly in general.

Upon seeing the tall one arrive, Kageyama let out a beastly growl. 'Tsukishima.'

He was greeted with a high and mighty grin.

'Well, well. If it isn't my dearest friend the king,' he snarled. Meanwhile, the other man smiled at Kenma shyly. Neither of them said anything.

'I won't say it again. Don't call me king,' Kageyama menaced as an answer.

Honestly, Kenma didn't know what to do. There was no way for him to stop the fight without getting hurt in a lethal way. He could _imagine_ stepping in, of course, but he could never actually do it.

Luckily, the other man cut both off before they could do anything worse.

'Stop it Tsukki, we didn't come to fight.' It only took him a gentle tug on the other demon's sleeve to stop him. Kenma watched their interaction in awe.

Kageyama and Tsukishima were like fire and ice; like the moon and the stars, so different yet also strangely alike.

Without asking for permission, they entered the flat. For a moment, Tsukishima just stared at Kenma, his gaze burning like igneous coals.

The four of them sat down in the living room while Kageyama placed himself almost ridiculously far away from their unwanted guests. Kenma cleared his throat and watched them warily, since he didn't know how to act around them. Interacting with fellow human beings was already bad, but interacting with a bunch of demons was downright horrible.

'What do you know about Hinata's death?' Kageyama finally asked.

The question seemingly confused Tsukishima's partner, he now wore a bedazzled expression.

'Tsukki,' he started, 'we should tell them.' While fidgeting with the hem of his shirt, he gazed at him in a meaningful manner. 'Tsukki,' he repeated.

'How can he be this dumb, not even knowing about _that_?' With his left hand he smoothed down some of his shirt's crinkles. Then he sighed, seemingly annoyed once again.

'Hinata Shouyou is not dead and will most likely never be dead.'

Relief swelled up in Kenma's chest, yet it was soon tainted with the salty taste of confusion. What exactly did he mean, why wasn't Hinata able to die?

'How?' Kageyama questioned, his face expressionless and stone-cold.

Tsukishima groaned. 'Yamaguchi tell them, I really can't handle his dumb face for much longer. He's getting on my nerves.'

A gentle smile grazed Yamaguchi's face and he continued where the other man had left off. 'Your friend Hinata is now an angel, just as I am. I've seen him in heaven.'

'Stop joking around!' Kageyama exclaimed as he grew angry. 'He can't be an angel, he's human!'

There now was something so atrociously dangerous and wild about him, Kenma wouldn't have dared to interrupt him in his rage. Still, he agreed with him. There was no way Hinata could've just randomly changed species. It was impossible.

Suddenly, Tsukishima began to cackle and a shiver ran down Kenma's spine. The man almost reeked of threat and menace, an odour both appalling and appealing.

'I never thought you'd be _this_ dumb, king,' he sneered and put his hand on his hip. 'I'll be so kind and explain it as simple as possible, so even _you_ 'll get it.'

For a second, Yamaguchi seemed to be unsure of what to do. After a second of thinking, he quietly leaned over to his friend and whispered something in his ear before retreating again. Now, Kenma was suspicious. There was definitely something going on and he was going to find out what exactly that was.

As Tsukishima took a step closer Kageyama simultaneously took a step back.

'Well, king. I shall now explain to you how angels and demons are made, so listen closely and don't ask any questions, it's very simple.'

It was highly visible how close to snapping Kageyama actually was. Eyes burning with hatred, fists clenched in strain and his heart beating way too fast. 'Go on,' he muttered with a huge amount of restraint.

Apparently this behaviour was to Tsukishima's liking since he continued almost immediately. 'We all start off as humans, it's similar to a test. You do good shit in life, you end up as an angel,' he motioned vaguely towards Yamaguchi. 'If you do bad stuff though, you'll probably end up as a demon. Shit happens.'

Now, Kenma stepped forward with his heart beating fast -too fast- as usual. There was a lump forming in his throat and he couldn't do anything to change that fact.

'What exactly does that mean?' he finally brought out, his voice slightly shaky.

Upon hearing his voice, Tsukishima stared at him with a nondescript expression.

'Another human?' Then he laughed. 'Oh king, how truly unbelievable. You just love trouble now, don't you?'

As an answer, Kageyama simply glared at him. 'That's none of your business Tsukishima.'

With that, Yamaguchi and Tsukishima turned around and left, waving one last time; one of them cheerful, the other one in a mocking manner.

Kageyama slammed the door shut and Kenma could almost feel the ground vibrate because of the force itself.

'Calm down,' Kenma mumbled, but deep down, he was at least as angry as Kageyama was.

Nothing made sense anymore, how could it after this big reveal? The thought alone that each and every human would end up as either demon or angel awoke a completely new kind of fear in Kenma. Anxiety flushed through his system. Was he living a good life or a bad one? Who would be able to determine the worth of a human life? Everything was horribly blurry and abstruse. Kenma could already feel the familiar pain of a migraine starting to come up.

'Do you believe them?' he asked while massaging his temples. Actually, he already knew the answer: Hinata Shouyou wasn't dead, but not alive either. Hinata Shouyou was now an angelic being, devoid of humaneness itself.

Kageyama just looked at Kenma and for the first time since they had met, their thoughts were one and the same. Neither of them said anything, but both thought plenty. Unconsciously, Kenma started to think about Kageyama as well. If every demon used to be human, then what about him? How come he hadn't known about any of this? Clearly, there was something wrong and Kenma was determined to unearth the truth. There was a single question hovering in the air, unspoken yet not unthought.

_Can I really trust you?_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So yeah, finally there are other characters! Don't worry, there'll be a few more quite soon.


	8. Plans and Guts

The last few weeks had been a complete and utter mess. Not once in his life had Kageyama dared to believe what neither Tsukishima nor his companion said. This time however, he knew they were telling the truth.

For once, Kageyama was able to put his feud with Tsukishima aside.

Still, the thought itself that demons and angels started off as humans caused him to feel sick. The nausea spread through his body and settled in his stomach. Aside from Hinata's fate, there was another thing bothering him.

_Why can't I remember my time as a human being?!_

At this point, his head began to throb and ache. Perhaps it was time to stop thinking so much; it simply didn't suit Kageyama (or so he tried to tell himself). Pondering about an issue just wasn't his way of solving a problem. Still, he couldn't stop thinking about what Yamaguchi had revealed them: Hinata wasn't dead.

Without a warning,a chilling question started to form in his head again; unwanted and cruel in nature. If Hinata was alive, then why hadn't he tried to find either him or Kenma? There were more and more questions whirling through his head and still, Kageyama couldn't help himself but feel slightly betrayed.

_Does he even care about me? We were a team, we were partners..._

Finally, he managed to stop the thoughts from raging through his head.

There were a few things he had to talk about with Kenma. Warily, Kageyama stared at the mobile phone which was lying on his desk. Goddamn demon brick.

Quickly, he pressed his fingers against his temples, trying to connect with Kenma. After a few moments, he was able to feel the other man's presence.

'I need you to come over.'

There was the sound of something falling down and soon after, Kenma cursed and was apparently confused. Kageyama didn't really get why.

'How did you get into my head?' the voice sounded a bit distressed.

'We've got a telepathic bond and I won't use one of those,' he clicked his tongue and gave the phone a dirty look, ' electric bricks.'

Unexpectedly, Kenma gasped in an offended manner. 'Phones are the best,' he simply stated, demanding no answer whatsoever. Then there was awkward silence.

'Come over. Now,' Kageyama demanded once again before breaking off the connection.

In the end, Kenma had no other choice left than coming over. It was arduous yet important, that's why he had to go no matter what.

 

'What took you so long?' Kageyama grumbled as Kenma arrived in front of his flat, panting and gasping for air, but otherwise alright. 'I know how we can trace Hinata.'

Kenma just stared at him. 'I figured.'

They moved to the kitchen and after making some coffee, they started to work on their plan. Every weakness, every failure and every possible danger needed to be calculated. No matter what, they had to be prepared for everything.

'I won't ask Yamaguchi again-' Suddenly, Kageyama went quiet with eyes widened in either shock or lunacy. Although he didn't say anything, his face was telling a story of its own. After a while, he shifted his eyes and was now staring at Kenma, who could feel shivers running down his spine.

The silence was unsettling and he started to feel scared; of either Kageyama or the silence he usually adored, he couldn't tell.

'Kenma,' the demon mumbled, voice soaking with honey and rusty nails, a smile like an angry swarm of hornets spreading over his face.

Then, a moment later, everything just stopped. Whatever it was, it just stopped.

Kageyama's whole body froze and he didn't blink. With some shaking, his body suddenly started to jitter and indefinable sounds were escaping his lips. He now held himself in a position which could only be described as vulnerable yet also somehow lonely and a second later, he was leaking surges of blood. It came dripping out of his mouth, his nose, his ears.

'Get out,' he hissed and Kenma knew that he meant him. Until now, he had kept quiet, but he was still the only other person in the apartment. With one last nod, he left in a hurry.

Kageyama would be alright, everything would turn out to be just fine, after all he was a demon. Still, Kenma couldn't stop thinking about what he'd witnessed and there was something bothering him. What exactly that was, he couldn't tell though.

Kenma wasn't an expert in terms of demonic anatomy, but one thing was clear: no one was supposed to bleed like that. There was something undeniably wrong and Kenma's heart beat like crazy. Somehow, he couldn't help himself but worry about Kageyama, even though he was a demon.

In this moment, Kenma decided there was way more he had to learn about this fucked up world he was currently a resident of. With demons and angels around, there were too many things he didn't know just yet and honestly, that bothered him. Being clueless was driving him insane.

Still, books weren't quite the option and blogs about demons and other supernatural creatures were usually full of shit.

Then, an idea sparked up in his mind and with quick movements and trembling hands, Kenma started to type a number in his phone. There was only one person he could talk to right now who would actually listen: Kuroo.

 

 


	9. We Need to Talk

Kuroo was woken up by the annoying chime of the doorbell. For a moment, he considered letting it ring until the visitor just left. It was probably just the mail man after all.

Tired, he looked out of his window only to realize that it was already night.

What the hell? he thought, but waking up this late wasn't actually that unusual for him. Studying until 6am simply had its positive and negative sides (but mostly negative ones). Honestly, his head hurt and felt like an utter mess.

'I'm coming, wait a sec!' Kuroo shouted in hopes of the guest actually being able to hear him. Hastily, he threw on some halfway decent clothes and tried to fix his hair. The latter was as always a useless attempt at trying to fix something that could never be fixed. 'Yeah?' he grumbled as he opened the door. 'Kenma! Did you forget your keys again?'

His roommate just stared at him and then slowly shook his head.

'I just didn't want to wake you myself. Too much of a hassle.'

Kuroo now combed his hair with his fingers, attempting to smooth it down a bit and let Kenma in.

'Sounds like you.'

Still, Kenma didn't move to his room as he usually did. Reluctantly, he tugged on Kuroo's sleeve to get his attention.

'I need to talk to you, it's about Kageyama.'

With a surprised look on his face, Kuroo turned around to muster him. This had to be important. Normally, Kenma wouldn't approach him like that, he'd just flat out say what was bugging him. Today was different.

'Let's sit down,' Kuroo proposed and after having done so, he took a deep breath. 'What's up?'

For a while, Kenma said nothing.

'Kenma?'

'What do you know about demons?'

It was getting harder to breathe and the world suddenly seemed to go on in slow motion. _Does he know? Don't tell me he's brought himself in danger!_

'Demons are demons. Why are you asking?' Nervously, he cast a glance at Kenma. Suddenly, he saw his best friend in a completely different light. Yet somehow, his answer had been enough for Kenma.

'You know about demons and angels.' It wasn't a question, but more of a statement.

Confused, Kuroo raised an eyebrow. _Okay, I'll just play it cool. Kenma doesn't need to know_.

'I don't know what you want from me-,' he began, but was interrupted by Kenma, who just pulled out his psp to play some game.

While pressing several buttons he didn't pay attention to his surroundings. Still, he was listening so Kuroo simply sighed.

'Guess I can't fool you anymore.' He tried to flatten his hair once again. 'You're right, I know about them.'

All of a sudden, a horrible thought started to form itself in the darkest corner of his mind. Why would Kenma be asking about demons? To be honest, there was only one reasonable explanation. Suddenly, everything made sense. This was really, really bad.

'It's about Kageyama,' Kenma repeated.

'You already mentioned-,' he began and suddenly, everything snapped into place. 'Oh no. No, no, no. Kenma don't tell me you did what I think you did!' There was a horrified expression on his face, mixed with hints of anger and fear. 'Who is it?'

Kenma averted his eyes and fiddled with his shirt's fabric.

'It's Kageyama, like I said. I had no other choice.'

Now Kuroo stood up quickly and started at Kenma wide-eyed.

'He's a demon?!' He sat down again and put his head in his hands. 'Ah, that makes sense. I suppose it's too late to give you the demon talk? I myself am one of the worst examples to begin with.' A defeated sigh escaped his lips. 'So what do you need?'

Kenma smiled. There it was again, the reason why Kuroo was his best friend. No matter what, he understood and didn't judge. He always had his back.

'There's something wrong with Kageyama.,' he started. 'When I was with him, he coughed up blood and just stopped being alive for a minute.' Although it sounded weird, this was the best description Kenma could come up with. After all , he had never been one to talk much to begin with. Conversation just wasn't his cup of tea.

For a moment, Kuroo seemed to be deep in thought, then his eyes widened in realization.

'Well fuck. I may not know Kageyama, but I'm pretty sure he's an idiot. I know exactly what's up, ugh.' With a quick movement, Kuroo put his hand onto Kenma's shoulder. 'You're both in trouble. Lend me your phone?' he asked and his expression was suddenly very serious. Wordless, Kenma handed him his phone. Who was Kuroo about to call? Admittedly he was scared but also a bit curious. Telling Kuroo about Kageyama had lifted a weight off his shoulders. Lying to your best friend was generally just a really bad thing.

The sound his phone vibrating quietly as Kuroo dialed a number was disturbing the silence. After a few seconds, someone picked up and he let out a relieved breath of air.

'Oikawa, I need your help... No... No?' There were a few moments of silence again. 'No! Oikawa, listen... Yes! Please, bring Iwaizumi with you, it's important.'

With that, the call ended.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, sorry for the late update, school has been an utter pain in the ass. I'm all in for Kuroo being the best friend ever so... yes! Next chapter there'll be more characters, as you've probably already guessed. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, comments and kudos are always highly appreciated ^^


	10. Sight/Insight

'You're trying to tell me the little kitten has concluded a contract with one of us?!' Oikawa exclaimed, an annoyed scowl appearing on his face. 'All this secret-keeping and he already knows! How useless!'

'Stop whining, Oikawa. You'll just end up getting wrinkles.'

'Iwa-chan you meanie!'

Annoyed, Kuroo tried to make them listen again. 'Guys, I'm serious.'

Now Iwaizumi crossed his arms and stared at him. 'So what do you need my help for?'

Oikawa joined him and glared at Kuroo for a moment before turning around to Iwaizumi. 'You meant _our_ help, didn't you?' he then corrected him.

Another sigh escaped Kuroo's lips. He tended to forget troublesome those two were as a pair. Brushing his hair back, he took in another deep breath. 'Kenma's contract partner hasn't fulfilled _the condition_. He's about to go on a rampage, pretty soon.

Until this moment, Kenma had observed and followed their conversation in silence.

Apparently, both him and Kageyama were in big trouble. Of all times, it had to be now. They had gotten so much closer to Hinata, yet there were even more obstacles they had to overcome. The path leading to Hinata was a dark and forbidden one. Still, nothing could stop them, not even death itself.

'Let's start with our payment though,' Oikawa began, eyes glistening gleefully. 'We don't want money, we're just looking for information, you know the deal. So is there anything good you can offer us, Kuroo?'

'I won't get the friendship bonus, I suppose?'

'Who do you think I am?'

'Maybe a bit less of an ass?'

'Oikawa, Kuroo, stop it. Now, ' Iwaizumi finally intervened. Enough was enough. For once, he needed those two to be serious and less combat-ready.

Still, there was another thing which made Iwaizumi slightly curious. Kenma, Kuroo's friend, had been very quiet the whole time and even though he looked bored, almost unimpressed, Iwaizumi spotted worry on his face. Also, an aura the darkest shade of blue was surrounding this young man, a colour which could only mean sadness.

'Kuroo,' Kenma suddenly said while staring at his best friend.

Surprisingly, this bad attempt at making Kuroo listen actually worked. Kuroo stopped his bater with Oikawa almost immediately upon hearing Kenma's voice.

'We only require one specific piece of information,' Iwaizumi now clarified and turned towards Kenma. 'We need to know your contract partner's name to make this whole thing work. Without the name we can do squat.'

For a second, Kenma shifted uncomfortably, but then slowly nodded in agreement. 'Kageyama Tobio. His name is Kageyama Tobio.'

All of a sudden, Oikawa let out a surprised gasp, shoved Kuroo aside, tripped over the carpet and then finally reached Kenma. 'Did you just say Kageyama Tobio?!' he asked.

Reluctantly, Kenma nodded again and hummed in confirmation.

Oikawa turned around to Iwaizumi and for a moment, they both stared at each other in disbelief.

'It's him, Iwa-chan, I'm sure. Now there are no more doubts, it's clearly him. If it's someone this reckless, it can't be anyone else.'

Stepping closer, Kenma mustered them in a confused manner and then turned to look at Kuroo. 'What's going on?'

Oikawa cleared his throat, trying to regain his composition. 'Tobio-chan was a junior I went to High School with, but not for long. He was in my volleyball team for a while.'

'Wait what are you talking about?' Kuroo asked. He could tell there was something going on. Of course, he had always been a little bit suspicious of Kageyama, but that just couldn't be right.

Oikawa continued. 'Five years ago, someday in June if I remember correctly, Kageyama Tobio was found dead in his parents' home. He killed himself. So obviously, your demon can't be as ancient as we all thought he'd be.'

'It takes hundreds of years to create a demon,' Iwaizumi added, 'and Kageyama has been dead for approximately five years.´His sole existence is an enigma.'

Cold shivers were running down Kenma's spine. All of a sudden, he felt a big lump forming in his throat, rendering him helpless and vulnerable, choking on the truth he'd just found out. For a moment, his sight was gone and there was nothing but darkness and a blue light in the corner of his eye that he couldn't look at no matter how hard he tried. Also, there was a buzzing sound filling his head, like an angry swarm of wasps.

'Kenma, are you alright? You don't look so good,' Kuroo said, moving closer to Kenma.

'I'm fi-' he started, but then felt his knees buckling. What was going on?

Kuroo managed to grab him before he hit the ground.

'Lay him down, we need to move,' Iwaizumi insisted. 'It's already begun and there's not much time left. We gotta hurry now, come on Oikawa!' He grabbed his bag and pulled Oikawa with him. 'Kuroo and Kenma, you will stay here. It's too dangerous for humans.'

'That's unfair, Oikawa's also-' Kuroo began to protest, but Iwaizumi and Oikawa were already on their way, leaving nothing but green smoke behind.

 

Minutes passed and to be honest, Kuroo didn't know what to do. He could only assume that Kenma's state had been caused by his bond with Kageyama, since he didn't seem to be physically hurt. Still, Kenma was too pale, he looked more dead than alive. His chest rose and sank hastily, as if he was caught up in a never-ending nightmare.

Kuroo sat down on the edge of the couch, watching Kenma. He would protect him if he had to. After all, Kenma was his best friend.

 

Shifting nervously, Kenma slowly started to regain his senses. Although he was conscious again, there was still this nerve-wrecking buzzing that filled his head. And also, there was another thing.

'Kuroo?' he asked, voice uncertain. 'Where are you?' Hands blindly reaching for thin air, Kenma felt his heartbeat going faster and faster. Still, not even the racing of his heart was able to heat up his body. All he felt was a strange coldness, unusual yet also somehow familiar.

Kageyama?

Suddenly, someone grabbed his hands. Kuroo.

'Kenma, how are you feeling?' he questioned. 'Please, look at me and tell me you're alright.'

'I can't.'

'What's wrong, are you injured?'

'Kuroo, I can't see,' Kenma finally said under his breath and his whole body began to jitter. 'I can't see, there's nothing.'

At first, Kuroo didn't know how to react. Could this possibly be an effect of Kenma's bond to Kageyama? But then, he shoved his own shock and confusion aside. Kenma needed someone to support him right now.

'It's alright. It'll pass. Oikawa and Iwaizumi are currently taking care of it, so don't worry. I just need you to hang in there for a little longer,' Kuroo eventually muttered in what he believed was a soothing voice.

Kenma couldn't stand this specific tone of said voice. It made him feel weak and useless. Still, he couldn't blame Kuroo. He was just trying his very best to make Kenma feel better and safe.

So there was nothing he could do except for lying awake and fearing for Kageyama's life.

And for the first time in his life, Kenma wanted to be able to do _something_ , to make a difference. Yet it was impossible, he was tied to this couch with his very own legs restricting him like cement blocks. There was nothing he could do at the moment.

Kageyama was his partner and just as they'd started to form a bond, Kenma was left all alone again. Whatever the hell was going on with Kageyama, Kenma wanted to support him, just like Kuroo did.

Why? Honestly, he had no idea and honestly, he didn't care at this point.

Yes, Kageyama was a demon, but more importantly, he was Kenma's friend and ally.

 

 


	11. Dark and Rotten

 

There really wasn't anything he could do. Kenma felt a strong need to get up and run to Kageyama so he could support him, yet there he was, tied to the couch. Plus the effects caused by Kageyama's condition were also taking their toll on Kenma. With every passing minute, he felt worse and worse.

His head felt as if it were to explode in any given moment, his chest felt heavy and peculiar. There were no signs of recovery, Kenma was still blind.

Although he was helpless and weak, there had to be a way he could help Kageyama. All of a sudden, he remembered something; a detail he'd read in a book about demons a few months ago, a way for him to communicate with his partner.

'Of course,' Kenma mumbled. The idea itself wasn't bad, but as a plan, the whole thing seemed to be downright suicidal. He needed to try it out nonetheless.

First of all though, he had to keep Kuroo busy for a while. Kenma knew he had to lie to his friend so the plan would work, but honestly, that was the worst thing for him. After all, what he feared the most wasn't pain or death; it was rejection and loneliness.

'Get me some water and a blanket?' he now asked.

'No problem,' Kuroo answered and even though Kenma wasn't able to see his face, he could tell that his best friend was smiling. Somehow, this made him feel even more guilty of what he was about to do.

Reaching for Kuroo, Kenma gently grabbed him by his shoulder. 'Thank you.

'No need to thank me, Kenma.' With this, Kuroo left the room.

Taking a deep breath, Kenma began to concentrate on the blue spot in the corner of his eye.

_Kageyama_

 

'Hurry up, Oikawa!'

'I'm not a demon like you, Iwa-chan. I actually need some oxygen. Cut me some slack!'

'There's no time to rest, we might already be too late!'

Oikawa was panting heavily and tried his best to catch his breath. 'Why do we have to clean up Tobio-chan's mess?! It's unfair!'

Although he was faster than Oikawa, Iwaizumi slowed down a bit so his partner could catch up with him. 'Kuroo gave us the information we needed, so we're obligated to help him. You know the rules. Plus, aren't you also at least a bit interested? There's something weird going on here.'

Before he could stop again, Iwaizumi grabbed Oikawa's hand and pulled him further along.

'Yeah, but still, unfair.'

'We've arrived,' Iwaizumi suddenly said.

Oikawa almost immediately stopped to bicker. 'I can feel it. There's something in the air. Something dark and rotten.'

Iwaizumi agreed with him. 'Let's go inside. There's no point in standing around here, doing nothing.'

Together, they entered the building and climbed up the stairs. From moment to moment, the strange aura they'd felt before became increasingly bewildering. It had felt dark and rotten before, like something evil lurching through the darkest alleys at night; now it felt more wistful and pitiable, like a lost child.

Aggression, dread, fatigue, loneliness, there were too many emotions at once, an overcharge of feelings.

Iwaizumi tumbled to the ground, covering his ears with his hands. All of a sudden, his breathing went ragged.

'Iwa-chan?'

'It's fine, I can go on. It's fine, don't worry,' he groaned. Kageyama's aura was simply too much. He had to be stopped.

Oikawa was concerned, he worried about his partner. But he also knew he had to do the right thing. At this moment, stopping Kageyama was the priority. With a groan, he heaved Iwaizumi up again and took his hand. 'Let me help you.'

And for once, Iwaizumi didn't argue or stop him. 'Thanks, Oikawa.'

'You'll have to buy me dinner for this favour though.'

A chuckle escaped his lips. ' Sure.'

They went up the rest of the stairs. With Oikawa's support, Iwaizumi was feeling much better. He knew the pain would return after he'd let go of him, but there was no time to worry about that right now.

The door to Kageyama's flat was closed. As quickly as possible, Oikawa picked the lock and they entered the apartment a few minutes later.

The whole place was a mess. The wallpaper was torn down, the grey concrete wall which usually stayed hidden was visible. Pieces of wood were lying around, covered with a thin layer of ice and snow. Most of the furniture was broken.

'Can you feel him?' Oikawa whispered. He didn't show it, but he was scared.

'Yeah, but it's weird, it's like he-' Iwaizumi stopped and then seemed to listen to something Oikawa himself couldn't hear. 'I know where he is, he's definitely here.'

'But I can't see him.'

'That's because he's outside. On the roof. Follow me and be careful.'

Oikawa gulped and then let Iwaizumi teleport them outside.

 

There he was, Kageyama Tobio. He looked slightly older than when Oikawa had last seen him, before he'd committed suicide.

Also, he looked like a demon. A full-fledged one, with wings, scary eyes, claws and the whole shebang.

Unconsciously, Oikawa took a step back. He would never admit it out loud, but he was afraid of Kageyama. There was nothing human about him anymore, contrary to Iwaizumi, who sometimes seemed to be more of a human being than Oikawa himself.

Iwaizumi pressed his hand in a reassuring manner. 'It's alright, Oikawa.'

A sudden, yet familiar wave of nausea and weakness overcame Oikawa and it took him all he had to stay on both of his feet. He was lending Iwaizumi his power, so he had to stay conscious. Otherwise his partner would black out as well and they'd both probably die.

'Hang in there,' Iwaizumi muttered, placed a gentle kiss on his partner's temple and then let go of his hand.

An earthy scent filled the air as he shot past Oikawa, preparing to attack Kageyama who was still roaming around. 'Hey, Kageyama!' he shouted.

As an answer, he received a disturbing screech and a hit which sent him crashing to the ground. After wiping the blood from his eyes, Iwaizumi laughed. 'No greeting for me then, huh?'

And just like that, their fight began.

 

 

 

 


End file.
